It takes a minimum of 60 days after the divorce is filed to get a divorce. If the parties do not agree about support, child custody, possession of the children, or property division, the case will take longer than 60 days. If either party is unfamiliar with the property and debts of the parties, the case will probably take longer than 60 days. It is not unusual for a case to go on for six months to a year.

The cost depends on the amount of time the lawyer and paralegal assistant are required to spend on your case. The amount of time spent depends on the issues in controversy and the level of controversy surrounding those issues. A divorce, including the Court filing fee, may cost as little as $2,000 or many thousands of dollars if the issues are complicated or very contentious.

We charge $150 for the initial consultation. At the initial consultation when we have discussed the facts with you we can tell you what we expect the case to cost. Our office accepts VISA and Mastercard.

You should bring any Court papers filed by the other party or by you. If there is an existing court order, you should bring it with you to the appointment. Copies of deeds, tax returns, and recent bank statements are also helpful.

You are primarily responsible for paying your attorney's fees. In a divorce, the attorney's fees should be paid from the community property. Under some circumstances, the other party may be required to pay some of your fees.

If we cannot reach agreement with the other party and the other party's attorney, your case usually goes to mediation before it goes to final trial.

No. Texas is a "no fault" state. If one party wants a divorce, then the divorce will be granted.

Not necessarily. In Texas, the Courts standard for dividing the community property is "just and right division". Separate property must be awarded to the owner of the separate property. It is the lawyer's job to analyze what property is community and what is separate property.

In Texas post divorce alimony is called Spousal Maintenance. The Texas Spousal Maintenance Statute only provides for post divorce support only in limited circumstances. Some high income parties agree to pay post divorce alimony for tax planning purposes.

Before a divorce is final each spouse owes a duty of support to the other spouse, and one spouse can be ordered to support the other while the divorce is pending.

The Texas Family Code has child support guidelines. The guidelines apply a percentage to the "net resources" of the paying party to determine the monthly child support. If the person paying child support makes more than $125,000 a year, different rules apply to the income over $125,000 a year. The Texas guidelines also consider the number of children in other families that the payer is required to support.

Portions of existing Orders regarding children, including conservatorship (custody), child support, possession periods with the child, and the various decision making rights of the parties can be changed in the future if there has been a material and substantial change in circumstances since the entry of the last Court Order, and the requested change is in the child's best interest.

Divorce provisions regarding the division of property usually cannot be changed once the Decree has become final.